Deputies fire shots, use Taser to stop driver

Jasper County deputies fired shots and used a Taser to stop a man who tried to evade arrest after driving on the wrong side of the highway.

Deputy Mike Smith was at FM 2245 and Highway 96 at about 5 a.m. Monday when saw the driver of a pickup truck traveling south in the northbound lane, according to Jasper County Sheriff Mitchel Newman.  Smith turned on his emergency light and siren but said the driver refused to stop. The driver continued traveling in the wrong lane, forcing other drivers to pull off to the side of the road.

The driver finally came to a stop but sped off again. Deputies fired shots at the truck driver's tires but he continued speeding away. The driver finally stopped just south of FM 363 in Kirbyville.  Sheriff Newman says the driver refused to get out, despite the presence of officers from Jasper County S.O., Newton County S.O. and Kirbyville P.D.

According to Sheriff Newman, Captain Robert Walker approached the suspect's car from the passenger side and used his Taser to subdue the man and take him into custody. Investigators found a fully loaded 44 magnum in the front seat with the suspect, as well as approximately $14,000 in cash.

The man was charged with Evading Arrest and taken to the Jasper County Jail.